DALLAS -- The 2001 NHRA drag racing campaign was a year to
remember for Reher-Morrison Pontiac Grand Am driver Bruce Allen. The
51-year-old Texas Pro Stock veteran had one of his best seasons in a long
time, racking up two national-event victories en route to his third career
third-place finish and 13th top 10. Although Allen finished fourth in '97,
his effort this season was his best since '89 when he compiled four wins in
six final rounds for a second-place finish.

Allen blasted out of the starting blocks strong at the Winternationals in
Pomona, Calif., qualifying No. 1 and advancing to the semifinals before
losing to eventual race winner Kurt Johnson. He captured three more pole
positions at Bristol, Tenn., Denver, and Seattle, qualified in the top half
of the field 16 times, in the top four 12 times, won at Brainerd, Minn., and
the NHRA Finals in Pomona, and tallied 29 round wins for a raceday batting
average of .604. During the second half of the season, beginning with the
NHRA 50th Anniversary Nationals in Pomona, Allen accumulated more round wins
(20) than any driver in the Pro Stock category. He talks about the completion
of '01, the progression of the Reher-Morrison engine development program and
what to expect from his Pontiac Grand Am in '02.

Allen at the Super Bowl.

How would you evaluate the '01 season? "We were fast enough all year to be in
contention for the championship but we weren't consistent enough. We started
out winning the Super Bowl race in Houston, which got us pretty pumped, and
then we went to Pomona and ran well. But then at Phoenix and Gainesville we
stubbed our toe a little bit and at several other races after that. We would
qualify well, but we weren't consistent enough to make good runs down the
track and we didn't take advantage of other people when they messed up - we
were the ones making the mistakes. We went through a learning curve all the
way up to the second Pomona race. Then we kind of got on to something that
was helping us and were able to start going more rounds. Like in every
sport, when you're in a position that you're struggling, people that you race
may not think that you're going to make the run either, so when your car
consistently shakes or you have trouble, other people see that and they may
not take you seriously. When you're fast like Warren (Johnson) and Jim Yates,
and you make round after round, they're probably not going to beat themselves
- you're going to have to beat them. During the first half of the season a
lot of our competitors felt that if they gave us a chance then we'd probably
screw up - and most of the time we did. The difference in the second half was
that we were making more rounds and people had to take more chances against
us to beat us. Not a gamble, but they had to be more aggressive because they
knew our Grand Am was running well."

George Marnell

How much did George (Marnell) and Mike (Edwards) using Reher-Morrison
horsepower help your program? "The one thing that it did do was no matter
how we ran we had two other people to gauge what we should be doing. It was
hard for all three of us to mess up all at one time, but we were racing with
different racecars and each car requires a slightly different setup. On some
teams they run the same cars and they're able to make changes based on how
each car is running. We didn't have that, but the one thing we could do is
compare our runs which gave us a benchmark. That way we knew how fast we
should be running because somebody with the same horsepower was running that
fast."

Was winning Pomona a momentum booster for 2002? "Not really. You're only as
good as your last race. All you get to do is look back and enjoy it a little
bit longer. Over the winter a lot of things will change -crew chiefs,
drivers, new equipment, etc. The engine aspect of Pro Stock racing is so
competitive, and extremely power related in the sense that if you gain five
or ten horsepower over the winter you can expect everyone else to do that
too. Just to stay even you have to increase your power. As far as momentum,
it might make the morale around the shop a little bit better, but by the time
we get back to Pomona for the first race, everything will be new and fresh.
From a personal standpoint it was awesome for me. We accomplished a lot last
year. In my midyear preview I think I said that we could finish in the
top-five and win a couple of races, and we did. I felt like the potential was
there all year. But personally I look at it as you're as good as your last
race."

Allen celebrates Brainerd win.

But it must have helped just to be able to stay alive on so many Sunday
afternoons. "Winning 29 rounds of eliminations definitely helped us. I think
looking back, if you start from Pomona, which we call the halfway point, we
gained more points in the second half of the year than anybody. If we had
all been tied going into that race, we could've won the championship - at
least that's how it appears on paper."

How much more horsepower can you get out of the current engine configuration?

"I think in the current configuration you could keep milking them a little
bit and pick up 10 or 15 horsepower on average per year. Statistically that
is about what we average year to year. But we're about to start a new
program with GM, the DRCE3, and we're pretty excited about the potential
there."

How much testing will you be doing during the winter? "The majority of
whatever we do will be at Houston. We're getting a new car that we'll take
out and debug. You like to get out at least three or four times - some people
like to test more than others. I would say our goal is to test three or four
times before Pomona, but it's more beneficial for us to stay in the shop for
a couple of reasons. One is for ongoing development and the other is from a
budget standpoint. That approach has always worked real well for us because
we have to be smart with how we do it. When you start out the year you need
to have fresh equipment, and you yourself need to be fresh. You don't need to
be beaten down and already been to the equivalent of 10 races by the time you
get to the Winternationals. The race season is long enough."

Can you test too much? "I think one of the things people get caught up in is
going fast. I like that, too, but everything is relative. If you go to
Reading, and it's fast there, that's great and I like that. But for the most
part, everywhere we test in the preseason is conducive to fast times and
speeds. But going fast in Houston in January doesn't mean much by the time
you get to Pomona. Everyone goes to test with a plan. The key is to be
disciplined enough where a fast run during the first session doesn't throw
you off from your initial purpose."

Were you satisfied with the third-place finish? "Yeah. We had enough trouble
in the beginning of the year that we finished as high as we could. I don't
feel like I drove very well this year either. One of the things that makes
for a bad combination is not making good runs and not driving well. When you
get in that rut it's a pretty tough road. I was real happy that we finished
third considering the year we had and where we were. There's a groove that
you have to try and get in. Once you're there it helps tremendously, and
builds confidence and motivation."

Any sponsorship in the works? "We always have a couple of people we're
talking to. We don't have anything very promising at the moment. That's not
going to keep us from racing. We'll still have Speedco on the car in some
capacity, and of course we have Pontiac. Not having a major sponsor is not
going to make an impact on whether we win or not. If something comes along,
great. But if it doesn't we'll just do the best we can."

Do you have high expectations for 2002? "Yes, but not unrealistic. I think
we've got a pretty good idea on what it takes to race and be competitive. One
of the key ingredients is money. You also need to set realistic goals. I
think we've got as good of a chance of winning this year as we ever have - at
least for as long as I've been here. There are a lot of other people that
feel that way too. If we do the same kind of things that we did last year,
and run into some luck here and there, I really think we can win it. It's all
a matter of keeping the proper perspective and being real honest with
yourself at where you are. The key for anyone to do well is to put yourself
in a position to win. Then you do the best you can - the big picture takes
care of itself. If you pay attention to the little details the rest of it
happens on its own."